A Common Sense Approach to Rental Properties

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Neighborly Love …

When I purchase rental properties, I make a point of meeting neighbors, giving them my business card, and letting them know I’m a good landlord. I care about my tenants, my homes and the community as well. The neighbors see that in action as I work to renovate and improve my properties.

All is well and good, until a less than stellar tenant enters the scene. Rick and Tammy (names changed to protect the guilty) moved into the house in April. They checked out well — but unfortunately, good jobs and salaries don’t tell the whole story.

The first police visit was within a couple months. The couple was fighting and Tammy called 911. I was unaware of this, and also didn’t know about the second incident, a couple months later. But when the third altercation happened, one of the neighbors texted me to inform me what had happened. I spoke with Rick and told him if the police were called again, eviction would be filed. (He down-played the situation, of course.)

So when I got a text in mid-December, from the same neighbor, saying there were five policemen in the front yard, along with my tenants, I filed eviction immediately.

We landlords can’t be at our rentals 24/7, so relying on neighbors to keep us informed is a valuable tool. And I also learned, through this situation, that when there’s violence or drugs involved at a rental, you can file for an emergency eviction and the tenants can be evicted within a few days instead of waiting the usual two-week period for a court date. (Good info, but hope I won’t need to use it!)